Snowboard binding

Abstract

A snowboard binding including a retaining member which can be secured to a flat portion of a snowboard in order to hold locked on the flat portion a cradle which accommodates a snowboard boot, and screws which secure the retaining member to the flat portion and which can be loosened in order to permit the orientation of the cradle relative to the flat portion. The screws have respective control keys which are accessible on the retaining member in order to loosen and tighten them and the binding includes loss-preventing holding devices for the screws on the retaining member in order to keep the screws attached to the retaining member regardless of whether or not they are engaged in the flat portion.

Description

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The invention relates to a snowboard binding of the type including the features mentioned in the preamble of the main claim.

BACKGROUND ART

Bindings that include those features are known, for example, from U.S. Pat. No. 5,816,603, or from the applicant's current production.

These known bindings comprise a discoidal retaining element which is provided with slotted holes and which is accommodated in a partially embedded manner in a discoidal opening formed in a cradle which is in turn to accommodate the snowboard boot. The boot is then secured in the cradle by means of bands and straps. A typical requirement of snowboarders is to be able to vary both the orientation and the relative position of the cradle on the flat portion of the board. In order to do this, the screws that hold the retaining element of the cradle are loosened and the cradle is moved by rotating it relative to the board or by engaging the screws in holes which are in a different position on the flat portion. At this stage, it is particularly easy to lose one or more of the cradle securing screws with the risk of irretrievably jeopardising the day's sport unless spare screws are available. In addition, the handling of the screws is impeded by the winter clothing normally worn for snowboarding, in particular by the gloves, which makes the adjusting operation even more complicated.

DISCLOSURE OF THE INVENTION

The technical problem underlying the present invention is to provide a binding in the case of which the operations for adjusting the binding relative to the board are particularly easy, even under difficult conditions and with clothing which is the source of possible obstruction.

Within the scope of this task, an object of the invention is to eliminate the risk of losing the screws and the consequent necessity to have spare screws available.

Another object of the invention Is to use for those purposes arrangements and equipment already provided on snowboards.

This technical problem is solved and these objects are achieved with a snowboard binding produced in accordance with the claims, which follow.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The features and the advantages of the Invention will emerge more clearly from the detailed description of a preferred embodiment thereof which is illustrated by way of non-limiting example with reference to the appended drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a partial diagrammatic view of a snowboard with an associated binding;

FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view, on an enlarged scale, of a detail of the binding of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a top view of a detail of FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is a sectioned view taken on the line IV-IV of FIG. 3;

FIGS. 5 and 6 are bottom views of two possible embodiments of the detail of FIG. 3.

BEST MODES FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION

In FIG. 1, T indicates a snowboard provided with a pair of bindings 1 (only one of which is shown) for boots of the so-called “soft”type. Each binding 1 comprises a cradle 2 whose central portion has an opening 3 suitable for accommodating a discoidal retaining member 4 by means of which the cradle is held and locked, but with the option of adjustable angular positioning as desired In the manner described hereinafter, on the flat portion 5 of the snowboard T. In its turn, the retaining member is held on the flat portion 5 by means of screws 7 which are engaged in corresponding holes 8 in the snowboard, with the option of a first adjustment stemming from the longitudinal movement of the entire binding, which is achieved by disengaging the screws 7 from the holes 8 In order to engage them in different holes 8, and with the option of a second adjustment which is achieved by loosening the screws 7 in order to cause the retaining member to slide transversely to the longitudinal axis of the board owing to the provision of slotted through-holes 10 in the retaining member, through which holes the screws 7 extend. The binding is subject to a third possible adjustment for angular orientation with respect to the board T by rotating the cradle 2 relative to the retaining member. All three of these adjustments are conventional and can be combined with one another as desired. Common to all of the adjustments is also the fact that, in order to effect any of them, it is necessary at least to loosen the screws 7 if not actually to disengage them from the holes 8.

The screws 7 are provided with a threaded cylindrical shank 11 having a widened head 12 at one end and a control key 13 (typically a transverse notch or a cross notch) In the head 12. A washer 14 complementing the head 12 is preferably interposed between the head 12 and the slotted holes 10 in the retaining member 4. The screws 7 are engaged in such a manner that they pass with the shank 11 but not with the heads 12 (and/or the washers 14) through the slotted holes 10 in order to hold and lock the retaining member on the flat portion once the screws have been tightened.

According to the invention, the retaining member 4 is provided with loss-preventing holding means for the screws 7 In order to keep the latter attached to the retaining member regardless of whether or not they are engaged in the holes 8 in the flat portion. The loss-preventing holding means comprise a discoidal plate-like element 15 superposed on the retaining member 4 and held thereon by means of an adhesive interface 16 applied to the lower, connecting surface. The plate-like element 15 has means for access to the control keys 13 of the screws 7 in order to permit access to the control key without having to remove the loss-preventing means.

The access means are constituted by slotted openings 18 in the plate-like element which have dimensions such as to permit access to the control keys of the screws but not such as to enable the heads 12 to pass through, with the result that the heads are sandwiched between the retaining member and the holding means.

The plate-like element is formed from a resilient plastics material, such as thermoformed EVA, and is shaped, at the surface remote from the retaining member, with circumferential projections and beads 19 as a snow-scraping device for snowboard boots. Thus, it is not necessary to provide the board with a separate snow-scraping member or, in other words, the snow-scraping member assumes this double functionality. Finally, it should be mentioned that the adhesive interface is limited to the regions of the plate-like element that are not subject to the superposition of the washers 14, or non-adhesive windows 20 are provided in the adhesive interface. These windows may be limited to the adjustment region of the heads 12 and washers 14, as indicated in FIG. 5, or they may extend as an elongation of one another, as indicated in FIG. 6.

Claims

1. A snowboard binding comprising a retaining member which can be secured to a flat portion of a snowboard in order to hold locked on the flat portion a cradle which accommodates a snowboard boot, and screws which secure the retaining member to the flat portion and which can be loosened in order to permit the orientation of the cradle relative to the flat portion, the screws having respective control keys which are accessible on the retaining member in order to loosen and tighten the screws, characterized in that it comprises loss-preventing holding means for the screws on the retaining member in order to keep the screws attached to the retaining member regardless of whether or not they are engaged in the flat portion.

2. A binding according to claim 1, the loss-preventing holding means having means for access to the control keys of the screws in order to permit access to the control key of the screws without removing the loss-preventing means.

3. A binding according to claim 2, wherein the screws have heads widened with respect to a shank and are engaged in such a manner that they pass with the shank but not with the heads through respective openings in the retaining member in order to hold and lock the retaining member on the flat portion, the loss-preventing holding means including a plate-like element superposed on the retaining member and held thereon, the means for access to the control keys of the screws including openings in the plate-like element which are suitable for permitting access to the control keys of the screws but not for enabling the heads to pass through, with the result that the heads are sandwiched between the retaining member and the loss-preventing holding means.

4. A binding according to claim 3, wherein both the retaining member and the plate-like element are discoidal.

5. A binding according to claim 3, wherein the plate-like element is shaped, on the surface remote from the retaining member, as a snow-scraping device for snowboard boots.

6. A binding according to claim 3, wherein the retaining member and the plate-like element are attached to one another with adhesive connection.

7. A binding according to claim 3, wherein the plate-like element is formed from a resilient plastics material.

8. A binding according to claim 7, wherein the plastics material is thermoformed EVA.

9. A binding according to claim 3, wherein the openings in the retaining member and in the plate-like element are slot-shaped.

10. A binding according to the claim 1, wherein the loss-preventing holding means is a plate-like element which is provided with securing means for securing it, with at least partial superposition, to the retaining member of the snowboard binding and which is provided with openings for access to the control keys of the securing screws of the retaining member.

11. A binding according to claim 10, wherein the securing means comprise an adhesive film.

12. A binding according to claim 10, wherein the plate-like element is shaped, on the surface remote from the retaining member, as a snow-scraping device for snowboard boots.

13. A binding according to claim 4, wherein the plate-like element is shaped on the surface remote from the retaining member, as a snow-scraping device for snowboard boots.

14. A binding according to claim 4, wherein the retaining member and the plate-like element are attached to one another with adhesive connection.

15. A binding according to claim 5, wherein the retaining member and the plate-like element are attached to one another with adhesive connection.

16. A binding according to claim 4, wherein the plate-like element is formed from a resilient plastics material.

17. A binding according to claim 5, wherein the plate-like element is formed from a resilient plastics material.

18. A binding according to claim 6, wherein the plate-like element is formed from a resilient plastics material.

19. A binding according to claim 4, wherein the openings in the retaining member and in the plate-like element are slot-shaped.

20. A binding according to claim 5, wherein the openings in the retaining member and in the plate-like element are slot-shaped.

21. A binding according to claim 6, wherein the openings in the retaining member and in the plate-like element are slot-shaped.

22. A binding according to claim 7, wherein the openings in the retaining member and in the plate-like element are slot-shaped.

23. A binding according to claim 8, wherein the openings in the retaining member and in the plate-like element are slot-shaped.

24. A binding according to claim 11 wherein the plate-like element is shaped, on the surface remote from the retaining member, as a snow-scraping device for snowboard boots.

25. A loss-preventing holding device for a snowboard binding having a retaining member which can be secured to a flat portion of a snowboard in order to hold locked on the flat portion a cradle which accommodates a snowboard boot, and screws which secure the retaining member to the flat portion and which can be loosened in order to permit the orientation of the cradle relative to the flat portion, the screws having respective control keys which are accessible on the retaining member in order to loosen and tighten the screws, the loss-preventing holding device comprising means for keeping the screws on the retaining member attached to the retaining member regardless of whether or not they are engaged in the flat portion.

26. The loss-preventing holding device according to claim 25, wherein the loss-preventing holding device is a plate-like element which is provided with securing means for securing it, with at least partial superposition, to the retaining means of the snowboard binding and which is provided with openings for access to the control keys of the securing screws of the retaining member.

27. The loss-preventing holding device according to claim 26, wherein the securing means includes an adhesive film.

28. The loss-preventing holding device according to claim 26, wherein the plate-like element is shaped, on the surface remote from the retaining member, as a snow-scraping device for snowboard boots.